Eyeglasses as we commonly know them are a combination of frames in which are mounted lenses that are worn in front of our eyes. Eyeglasses fulfill a number of functions. Safety glasses are a kind of eye protection against flying debris or against visible and near visible light or radiation. Sunglasses allow better vision in bright daylight, and may protect against damage from high levels of ultraviolet light. Other types of glasses may be used for specialized viewing of visual information, such as stereoscopic pictures, or simply just used for aesthetic or fashion purposes.
The most common type of eyeglasses are used for vision correction wherein the surfaces of each lens are ground so that the lens will refract the light to compensate for irregularities in a person's vision. Although glasses can be inconvenient, they are a necessity of everyday life for those individuals who need them to correct for myopia, hyperopia, presbyopia, or astigmatism. For many people, the need for corrective glasses is such that they are unable to perform daily tasks such as driving, reading, or writing, without the use of their particular corrective lenses.
The lenses are positioned in front of the wearer's eyes with the use of a frame assembly. The modern frame configuration has been in use for over three centuries and includes a lens mount which is formed to fit the size and shape of the individual lenses and a nosepiece including pads which support the lens mount on the individual's nose. The lens mount and lenses are held in place by temples extending rearward from the lens mount and passing over the individual's ears. The eyeglass frames comprise one of a multitude of frame designs offered to a wearer to suit the wearer's particular taste, needs, and fashion.
Because of the individual design of a wearer's frames which are further customized according to the required length of the temples, the shape and size of the bridge of the wearer's nose and the width of the wearer's head, the lenses are typically dependent upon a unique frame configuration to be correctly positioned in front of a wearer's eyes. In the event of breakage of the frames, whether it is the breakage of a temple, or of the nosepiece, or of a portion of the frame securing one or both lenses, a wearer will need to have the frames repaired, replaced, or acquire a new prescription with new lenses and frames. However, the wearer is generally at a loss for immediate replacement since obtaining an appointment to have one's eyes rechecked and the ordering of new glasses takes a significant period of time of weeks or more. If the damaged or broken frames are not usable even with a temporary repair, the user may have to resort to a previous pair of glasses that may not have the proper corrective prescription.
Therefore, a temporary eyeglass frame is needed that is not ungainly to wear, can mount a variety of lenses, and be usable for a period of time until a permanent pair of glasses can be obtained.